


Imaginary Friends

by VampAmber



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Caring Castiel, Creature Fic, Dean Has Self-Worth Issues, Dean and Food, Dean has a lot of thinking to do now, Destiel - Freeform, Fluff, Frottage, Good Boyfriend Castiel, Imaginary Friends, Innocent Castiel, Kid Fic, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, Making Out, Mermaids, Nervous Dean, New Relationship, Questioning Dean, Reunions, Soulmates, Teenage Castiel/Teenage Dean Winchester, heteroflexible Dean, maybe not as slowly as I thought..., mer!cas, merfolk, taking things slowly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-13
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2018-10-18 09:14:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10613835
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VampAmber/pseuds/VampAmber
Summary: Almost all the kids in Dean’s kindergarten class had an imaginary friend of some sort. One of the girls had a huge bunny that liked to eat her spinach for her at dinner time. A boy had one that was wearing armor like those knights in the movies. But only Dean had one that lived in the water by his house. And unknown to him, or anyone else for that matter, only Dean had one that wasn’t imaginary.For a year, Dean and Castiel were the best of friends. But when Dean had to move away with his family, he was eventually convinced that Castiel the mermaid was just an imaginary friend. When he finally moved back to his hometown 13 years later, the last person he expected to run into was his old imaginary friend. Though running into Castiel was probably one of the lesser unexpected things that ended up happening...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry I've been kinda MIA lately on here. Between moving out of state because of divorce/annulment/whatever (long story, don't wanna get into it), and working on my DCBB fic, which obviously can't be released for quite some time, I've been not finishing anything I can post lately. My bad. I should be better now, hopefully. *fingers crossed?*
> 
> But yes, as for this, there are a few Facebook groups, and a few (or mostly one) individuals that seem to be all about the mer!Cas fics lately, after having just finished OotD, and all the freaking pictures being posted spawned this plot bunny against my better judgement. But, you gotta feed the damn things or they start nibbling on your soul. Once was enough, thanks.
> 
> Anyway, I may or may not end up turning this into a series, or at least writing a sequel. It kinda just... ends, but I felt like if I added much more, I'd end up with the same kind of drawling off ending, but just have a few more pages of text, yanno? So, if enough interest is expressed (which for me is almost any interest expressed at all cuz I'm a total fic writer pushover), I might write more. If the all mighty plot bunnies allow it, at least.
> 
> **Edit:** Okay, I'm adding more, as further chapters. Yays?
> 
> Hi, can you tell it's butt early in the morning as I post this? As always, no betas were harmed in the proofreading of this fic because I don't trust 'em so I don't use 'em.

Almost all the kids in Dean’s kindergarten class had an imaginary friend of some sort. One of the girls had a huge bunny that liked to eat her spinach for her at dinner time. A boy had one that was wearing armor like those knights in the movies. But only Dean had one that lived in the water by his house. And unknown to him, or anyone else for that matter, only Dean had one that wasn’t imaginary.

They’d met the summer before he started kindergarten, actually. Dean had been swimming, as he did often since they lived in a house that was right across the street from a small beach, and he had accidentally gone out farther than he was supposed to. He couldn’t see his father, he was so far out, and he started to panic. Normally, he was a great swimmer (again, because he lived across the street from a beach), but the panic he felt made all those years of experience at not drowning completely fly from his brain. He started splashing about, and when he tried to yell for help, the water started going in his open mouth and that only made him panic worse.

Dean started to sink below the surface, no longer able to keep himself afloat, when he suddenly felt somebody yanking on his wrist. His vision had gone kind of blurry from the not breathing, so he couldn’t tell who it was, but it didn’t really matter because he was being rescued. When he breached the surface, he felt a hand smacking him on the back, trying to help him cough up the water in his lungs. It was way too small to be his dad’s hand, and no one else had been at their small portion of the beach when he’d gone into the water, so Dean turned around to see who had saved him.

It was a boy, about his own age, maybe a year older at most, treading water next to him. He had dark, messy hair, and the prettiest blue eyes Dean had ever seen, even prettier than some of the characters in his favorite cartoons. When he could finally breathe correctly again, Dean croaked out a “Thanks.” The boy just smiled. Dean coughed a couple more times, then asked “You live here?” The boy shook his head no. “Oh, cuz I do. Over there, in that green house,” Dean said, and pointed as best he could while not going back under the water. They were at the other end of the beach, but he could still see his house, and even his dad, who was now talking to his mom. They must not have noticed him splashing?

“Wanna come over and play?” Dean asked. The boy shook his head no again, only this time he looked sad about it. “Why not?” The boy pointed towards his feet and sighed. Or at least, he pointed where his feet should be. Dean could see that instead of having legs, the boy had a fish tail, just like Ariel the little mermaid. That would definitely explain why he couldn’t come play at Dean’s house.

“I could come back tomorrow and we could play here?” Dean suggested, and he couldn’t help but smile when the other boy’s face lit up in a grin before nodding. “I’m Dean,” he finally remembered to introduce himself.

“Castiel,” the boy said, his voice sounding rough, like he hadn’t used it in a long time.

“Cas-tee… Cas-steel... “ Dean struggled with the weird sounding name. “Cas… I’ll just call you Cas. Is that okay?” Cas nodded. “I probably oughta go now. Thanks again for saving me.” Dean waved at his new friend as he swam back towards his family.

They’d ended up spending almost every day together that summer. Cas was afraid of people that weren’t Dean, so they usually found an isolated cove or something to play in, whenever they weren’t just swimming together. Dean would sneak candies in a sealed plastic baggie and let Cas try them, and Dean showed him how to build a sandcastle. They talked a lot, as well. Dean loved hearing all the stories about Cas’ family and his life under water, and Cas was equally amazed by all the things Dean told him about his life. Cas would bring interesting shells to give to Dean, and Dean brought Cas a plastic army man and a few other tiny things that wouldn’t get messed up by water.

Whenever Dean would go home and tell his parents about his new friend, they would always share a weird little smile before telling him something about how it was good to have such a big imagination. He quickly learned that friends like Cas were called “imaginary friends”, and he made sure to tell Cas about it the very next day.

“We’re imaginary friends?” Cas asked, and Dean nodded. “But I thought ‘imaginary’ meant not real?”

Dean just shrugged, because he’d thought the same thing. “That’s what they keep calling you, though, so I guess that’s what we are?”

“Humans are weird,” Cas sighed.

Cas was sad a few months later, when Dean told him school would be starting. “I’ll miss you, Dean,” he said, reaching for Dean so they could hug each other.

Dean squeezed his friend extra hard. “I’ll only be gone in the mornings. I can still come play with you after,” he promised.

“You will?” Cas asked, voice full of hope.

“Of course. You’re my best friend.”

“You’re mine too, Dean.”

They didn’t see each other every day, like they did during the summer, but Dean was found more often than not at the beach whenever he could convince one of his parents to go with him. The teachers at school loved hearing all the stories he told them about Cas and the things they did together, but they all called him Dean’s imaginary friend as well. But Dean didn’t mind, because Cas was cool no matter what he was called. The other kids were amazed whenever he showed them the gifts Cas would give him, but he was confused that their imaginary friends never gave them anything the way Cas did. He had Cas bring extra shells at one point, and Dean gave each of his classmates one, which seemed to delight everybody.

Dean made sure to teach Cas everything he was learning at school, so that they could read together. It was difficult to get the books to where Cas was without them getting wet, but as long as he didn’t get too close, they were fine. The letters were easier, because they could just draw them in the sand.

Kindergarten had ended a week ago, and Dean was back to spending every day with Cas, when his parents told him the news that would break both their hearts. Dean’s parents sat him down in the living room that night, and explained to him that his dad had just gotten a better job, and that they’d be moving to a different part of the state, to be closer to it.

“But Cas!” Dean yelled. “He lives here, I can’t leave him.” Tears started pouring from his eyes, but he didn’t care. He couldn’t leave his best friend. Who else would sneak him gummy bears in a plastic baggie? Who else was gonna bring books for him to read, and teach him the bigger words so he could read grown up books? Even after a year, Cas was still afraid of going near anybody else, so if Dean were gone, Cas wouldn’t have any humans to play with.

“Dean, sweetie,” his mom said reassuringly as she gave him a big hug, “you can take your imaginary friend with you, we don’t mind.”

“But he lives in the ocean,” Dean said in between sniffles.

“We can put a wading pool in the backyard and you can pretend it’s the ocean?” His dad suggested.

“I can’t pretend where he lives, he has to be in the ocean. His family’s there, and the fish he eats, and his bed and everything,” Dean tried to explain to them, but they just didn’t seem to understand.

“He’s just pretend, sweetie, so he can live in a pretend ocean,” his mom tried to say, but Dean had had enough.

“He’s not pretend, he’s real!” He yelled, loud enough to wake up Sammy in his bedroom down the hall. His dad went to check on his little brother while his mom tried rubbing soothing circles on his back, but he would not be soothed. “He’s real, and he brings me shells, and I’m teaching him to read and everything. I can’t leave him, and he has to stay here,” he tried to explain, tears starting all over again.

“Shh, sweetie, it’s okay,” his mom kept repeating, but the tears didn’t stop.

His parents kept an extra close eye on him for the next week while they packed, and didn’t let Dean go to the beach even once. He was pretty sure they were angry at him for yelling at them, because they would get grumpier every time he begged to go see Cas. Finally, the night before the moving truck was going to come to take all their stuff to the new house, which was as far away from the ocean as you could get from what Dean could figure, he ended up staying up really late so that he could sneak out. He knew he wasn’t supposed to cross the street by himself, and he really wasn’t allowed to go to the beach by himself, but he at least had to see Cas one more time, to let him know he’d be leaving.

Dean walked up to the edge of the beach, water hitting his bare feet as the waves came in and out, and started yelling Cas’ name. He didn’t know if his friend would be nearby or not, since it was so late, but he at least had to try. He screamed “Cas” at the top of his lungs for what felt like hours, and just as he was about to give up because his throat hurt, he saw a small blob pop up out of the water a little way out. “Cas? Is that you?” He shouted at the blob, and as it swam closer he sighed in relief because it was.

“Dean?” Cas said as he pulled himself up onto the sand. Dean all but leaped into his arms to hug him, tears already falling. “Where were you all this time, Dean? I was scared you got hurt or something,” Cas said, squeezing his friend back.

“We’re moving, Cas,” Dean said, tears making him choke on the words.

“Moving?” Cas asked, pulling back slightly to look Dean in the face. “What’s that?”

“We won’t be living in that house any more. We’ll be really far away, and I’ll never get to come here ever again,” Dean said, hanging his head.

“But you’ll come back after, right?” Cas asked. Dean shook his head sadly. “You won’t be coming back ever?” Cas asked, terrified of the answer. Dean nodded sadly, and Cas started crying as well. “You can’t go, Dean, you can’t. Tell them you can’t.”

“I tried, and they yelled at me. They said you were just pretend,” Dean said, going back to hugging his best friend tightly. “They don’t believe that you’re real. Can’t you show them?”

“If people see me, they might hurt me, Dean. I can’t let anybody else see me, even your parents. It’s not safe. I’m sorry,” Cas said through his tears.

“I wish I didn’t hafta go, Cas. I’m gonna miss you so much,” Dean said, pajamas soaked through with ocean water but clinging to his friend anyway.

“I’m gonna miss you too, Dean,” Cas said, then pulled back again to look at Dean’s face. He kissed him lightly on the lips, and then pulled away again.

“Why’d you kiss me?” Dean asked, confused.

“Grown ups do it when they like each other, so I thought…” Cas said, actually blushing slightly. But Dean just nodded and kissed him on the mouth back, just like Cas had done.

“I’ll come back, as soon as I can Cas,” Dean promised, lying down next to his friend in the sand.

“I’ll wait for you here, Dean,” Cas said, smiling as Dean yawned.

Dean’s parents found him asleep on the sand the next morning, alone, after having panicked at finding his bed empty. He was grounded for almost six months after they moved, and even had to see a therapist for the first few months. He finally pretended that Cas hadn’t been real, just so they’d stop making him go.

Dean never really forgot about Cas, but as he got older, he started to believe that he had just been an imaginary friend and nothing more, just like everybody had always told him. Mermaids didn’t exist, so there was no way Cas could exist, right? He did still keep all the shells and other presents that he had pretended that Cas had given him, though. No point in throwing away perfectly good souvenirs, after all. He even had his favorite one turned into a necklace that he wore every day. His family started moving around a lot after he finished third grade, so he justified it as helping him to remember his childhood home.

He was 19 when he finally moved back to his hometown. He had tried college, he really had, but it just wasn’t for him. The only good part was it had been a community college, so that year of tuition and whatnot didn’t put him too far into debt.

After giving up on college, he couldn't stand to see the disappointment on his parents’ faces, so he’d asked his not-exactly-uncle Bobby if he could stay at his place for a bit, maybe get a job at his garage. Bobby loved Dean like a son, so of course he had agreed. So Dean had packed a few bags, loaded up his car (a beat up ‘67 Chevy Impala he planned on putting back together again when he could afford it, but for now at least it ran well), and driven across three states to get back to the town he’d lived in for the first six years of his life.

He’d been incredibly young the last time he was here, but Dean still recognized a few things. After dumping his few possessions off in the room Bobby was letting him use, he drove around to see what all he could remember. The elementary school hadn’t changed a bit, and he smiled as he looked over at the playground. That had been his second favorite place in the world back then, right after the beach where he’d always played with his imaginary mermaid friend. The house he grew up in looked completely different, though. It was painted an ugly yellow color now, and they had added a deck onto the back that didn’t match the house at all. Dean made a face, before pulling into one of the few parking spots the beach across the street bothered to have.

It was pretty late in the evening, the sun almost completely set at this point, so the beach was practically deserted. Dean took off his shoes and socks and shoved his keys in his pocket as he started wandering, not realizing how much he’d missed the feeling of sand between his toes until finally experiencing it again. Other than himself, there were really only four other people on the beach, the small group obviously a family. He watched them pack up their stuff, and returned their friendly waves as they walked off in the direction of his old house.

Dean continued his walk, just enjoying the smell of the ocean. He’d never really felt right, living in landlocked areas, and he was more glad than ever that he’d decided to move back. This place felt like home in a way none of the other places he’d lived ever had. Just as he was finally about to turn around and head back to his car, he spotted a person sitting on the rocks over by a secluded cove, staring out at the water. Something about the guy felt familiar, even though it had been over a decade since he’d last been here, and Dean couldn’t help but start off in the direction of the stranger. The closer he got, the more familiar the guy felt, but Dean could not for the life of him figure out why. The guy had dark looking messy hair, and was wearing shorts and a t-shirt, and he was staring out at the ocean in the most melancholy looking way possible.

“Hey,” Dean said in greeting without thinking. The stranger jumped slightly from being startled, then started to scramble down the ledge into the cove. “Shit, sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” Dean apologized, slowly making his way over to the frightened guy, who thankfully seemed to calm down enough to sit back down on his ledge. “I used to live around here, and just moved back today. I was curious to see how it all looked now,” Dean continued, not sure why he was giving his life story to a random guy on a beach, who had now turned to stare at him, face still in shadow from the growing darkness. “I’m Dean,” he introduced himself, confusing himself even further.

“Dean?” Asked the guy in a gravelly sounding voice, like he barely used it.

“Yeah, Dean Winchester. I moved from here about thirteen years ago. Did we know each other?” Maybe they were friends in kindergarten and that was why he seemed so familiar?

“Dean!” The guy shouted, and suddenly he was rushing forward. Shit! Dean struck a defensive pose, suddenly glad he knew how to take care of himself in a fight. But instead of hitting him, the guy flung himself at Dean, wrapping him in a hug. “You came back! You came back like you promised!”

“Whoa, whoa, what the hell dude?” Dean said as he shoved the obviously crazy guy away from him. The guy looked at him, hurt and confusion evident in his blue eyes now that they were closer. Blue eyes that he recognized but couldn't seem to place. He felt like he was drowning, only it was just a memory. Blue eyes, and dripping dark hair, a small hand hitting him on the back to help get the water out of his lungs… “You…” Dean couldn’t figure out what to say.

“Dean,” the guy said, softly. “I waited for you here, just like I said I would.” He smiled, hesitantly.

“But I thought you weren't real,” Dean whispered.

“We were imaginary friends, Dean, but that didn't mean I wasn't real,” Cas said. Holy shit, it was Cas. In front of him. Completely real.

“You have legs,” Dean pointed out stupidly.

Cas nodded. “It started happening a few years ago. When I stayed out of the water long enough, they just… showed up. Nobody knew why.” He tugged at the bottom of his t-shirt. “I found some clothes, and started exploring the human world, hoping maybe I could find you.”

“But I wasn’t here,” Dean finished for him, and Cas nodded.

“Last year I met the man you mentioned a few times, Bobby, and he thought I was homeless so he gave me a job cleaning at the place where they fix cars. I was afraid to mention knowing you, because I didn’t want him to kick me out because I was ‘crazy’ for thinking I was a ‘mermaid.’” Dean had to suppress a laugh when Cas actually used air quotes. He also felt kind of sad though, knowing that what Cas was saying must’ve happened at least a few times for him to learn to not do it any more. “He mentioned something about his nephew coming to stay with him, but I didn’t realize he meant you. I was starting to think I’d never see you again, Dean.”

“This… it doesn’t make any sense, Cas,” Dean said, running his hands through his hair. “You can’t be real.”

“But I am Dean. I'm real, and this is happening.” Dean still couldn’t believe it, but suddenly it didn’t matter, and now it was Dean flinging himself into Cas’ open arms, tears leaking from his eyes.

“They kept trying to convince me you weren't real, and I ended up believing them. I’m sorry Cas, I’m so sorry, “ Dean said as he cried into Cas’ shoulder blade.

“You’re here now, Dean, and that’s all that matters,” Cas said into Dean’s hair. “I finally have my best friend back, after all this time. I missed you so much Dean.”

“I missed you too, Cas. I think deep down, I always still knew you were real.” Dean pulled back enough that he could grab the necklace cord and pull it out from under his shirt. “I had this made about five years ago, and I never take it off,” he said as he showed the shell to Cas.

“I found that one for you a few months before you left,” Cas said, and smiled at the memory. “I saw it on the ocean floor as I was swimming to meet you, and wanted you to have it. You taught me how to spell ‘Cas’ that day.”

Dean ducked his head and blushed. “I forgot the part. I just picked it cuz it was the prettiest one.”

“You kept some of them?”

“Actually, I kept all of them,” Dean said, blushing further.

“I still have that plastic army man,” Cas admitted, and he pulled it out of his shorts pocket to show Dean. “I always carry it around to remind me of you.”

“That’s way too chick flick-y for me, man,” Dean groaned. “You’d think we were freaking reunited lovers or something.”

“Is that bad?” Cas asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion.

“Yeah, cuz we’re guys,” Dean responded.

“Can guys not also be lovers?” Cas asked, still confused.

“Well, yeah, they can. Of course they can. Just… I’m not into guys,” Dean ended lamely. He wasn’t homophobic, but he’d never once been attracted to a guy so he was obviously straight. Right?

“Oh. Of course, Dean,” Cas said, nodding his head.

“I should probably get going,” Dean said, suddenly feeling uncomfortable without understanding why. “I start at Bobby’s garage in the morning.”

“Oh, will you be one of the people fixing the cars?” Cas asked, brightening up.

“Yeah, I’m gonna be working there from now on.” Okay, this stuff didn’t feel uncomfortable. Why had he felt that way before, then?

Cas’ face broke into a huge smile. “Then I will see you at work tomorrow, Dean.” He gave Dean a hug, which he was more than happy to return, before stepping back over to the ledge he’d been sitting on earlier.

Cas stripped out of his shirt, shoving it in a hidden away hole in the rock, and had started taking off his shorts before Dean turned around to face away from him. “What’s with the random naked time?” He asked, trying to keep from blushing.

“I only come to land to interact with humans. I still live in the ocean,” Cas explained. Dean still refused to turn around until he heard a large splash. He finally looked over to see Cas staring at him from the water, smile on his face and tail flicking above the water. He waved and said “See you tomorrow, Dean.”

Dean waved back, still not completely convinced he wasn’t hallucinating the whole thing. “See ya, Cas.” His friend smiled one last time, then dove under the water. Dean stared in awe as he saw the entirety of Cas’ tail. When they were kids, the whole thing had been dark blue and kinda plain, but now there were lines of light blue making designs over the whole thing, and there were a bunch of extra fin bits all over the place. If he hadn’t been mistaken, there had even been one going up Cas’ back. He’d have to remember to ask Cas about that tomorrow. Unless this ended up all being a dream, that is.

Bobby gave him a few odd looks when he finally got back from his bizarre trip down memory lane, complete with a reunion with his mermaid best friend, but he didn’t say anything as Dean made his way upstairs to what was going to be his room from now on. It was still pretty early, but Dean immediately stripped down to his boxers and got into bed. The driving had been physically exhausting, but the real reason he felt like he was about to pass out was that his entire world had just completely changed. Or in this case, changed back to its original settings. Dean groaned and shoved his pillow over his head. Would it be better if he woke up tomorrow and this was all a dream, or if all this had actually happened?

As for his actual dreams that night? Cas starred in every single one of them, and while that by itself made sense to Dean, the one where they were kissing on the beach, Cas’ tail curved around Dean’s legs as they frantically invaded each other's mouths, did not. When he woke up, confused by the images from that dream still looping in his head, Dean tried desperately to remember if he had ever, even once, had any sort of crush on a guy before. But try as he might, he came up blank. It was only Cas.

Which made things somewhat uncomfortable when Dean got to work later that morning. “Hello, Dean,” Cas greeted him when he walked in, grinning like an idiot.

“Uh, hey Cas,” Dean said in return, trying his hardest to not blush as his brain decided to remind him of what he’d been doing with the guy just a few hours ago in dreamland.

“You guys already know each other?” Bobby asked, confused.

“Yeah, we uhh…” Dean started, before Cas interrupted him.

“We were best friends when Dean was in kindergarten,” Cas said excitedly.

“Well, you shoulda mentioned that earlier,” Bobby said to both of them teasingly.

“Didn't think I’d ever run into him again,” Dean said and stared at the floor.

“Well, I’m just glad you already have a friend around here,” Bobby said and patted Dean on the back. “Bit a socializing should do you some good, going off of what I hear from your parents.”

“Could we maybe not talk about that?” Dean asked, trying to avoid the questioning look Cas was throwing his way.

Thankfully, Bobby listened, and Dean spent the rest of the morning learning the ropes. By the time noon rolled around, he’d already started in on his first engine, and was elbow deep when Bobby told him to go take a lunch break. “Hey, Cas,” Bobby called over to the other boy, who was currently sweeping the sidewalk out front. “You take your lunch break too. Maybe show Dean that burger place down the road?”

“Definitely,” Cas agreed. “C’mon Dean, the cheeseburgers there are incredible. Definitely my favorite food. After gummy bears, of course.” Then Cas gave him the most awkward wink in existence, and Dean couldn’t help but groan as he followed, only pausing long enough to wash the mess from his hands. “So, are you enjoying fixing cars?” Cas asked as the two walked down the small road that counted as the main street in town.

“Yeah, it’s pretty great,” Dean replied, suddenly not able to look at Cas. When he was working, he’d been able to push that dream from last night out of his head, but now that they were basically alone, it was all he could think of.

“I think you’ll enjoy the cheeseburgers they serve at the restaurant, Dean,” Cas chatted happily, oblivious to Dean’s discomfort. “They put something delicious called ‘bacon’ on them, and when you take a bite the juice squishes out and goes all down your chin. It’s almost as messy as eating fish from the ocean.”

Cas let out a small laugh at that, and Dean couldn’t help but look over at him and grin. And then he turned completely red, and even stumbled over his own feet. “Damn it,” he muttered, trying his hardest to get rid of the blush, when all he could think about was what Cas’ lips would feel like against his.

“Dean, are you okay?” Cas sounded worried, with good reason of course, and he reached out his hand to grab Dean’s arm to help steady him. Dean looked back at his friend, and got caught in those blue eyes, no longer able to look away. Yeah, guy or not, Dean was completely gone even though he technically barely knew Cas now.

“Yeah,” Dean said softly, still staring at the endless blue in front of him. It was like the ocean came along with Cas, even when he no longer had his tail and fins. And Dean wasn’t the type to do poetry, so that thought seemed even more out of place than usual.

“We should probably go get our cheeseburgers soon,” Cas said just as softly, though he was still staring into Dean’s eyes. It made Dean wonder just how much of this Cas actually understood. Could he tell why Dean was having such a hard time breathing? Hell, was he maybe feeling the same thing, even?

Dean nodded, and their eyes finally broke contact as they started to walk again. Now, they were both quiet, and while Dean knew the reasons behind his silence, Cas’ was a complete mystery. Dean’s brain was whirling a mile a minute. It was definitely a crush or something, there was definitely an attraction. Only… Dean had never flirted with a guy before, because he’d never been interested in one. Was it done the same way? Did he go out and buy Cas a thing of flowers, tell him his hair looked pretty, open the door for him and pull his seat out at the restaurant? Mixed in with those thoughts were the annoying reminders that he’d been back around the guy for less than 24 hours and already he was trying to figure out where to take him on a date. Was that even normal?

But the more Dean thought about it, the more he realized that Cas felt like home, or some such nonsense like that. He’d seen a few chick flicks, heard girls talking about stuff, and this really sounded like the plot to one of those teenage romance novels. But did that make it any less real? And could he really talk, seeing as how he was walking down the damn street next to a mermaid who just so happened to have legs at the moment? He was starting to give himself a headache with all this thinking, by the time they reached the burger joint.

It was a hole in the wall looking diner, but from the grin on Cas’ face you’d think it was the best damn 5 star restaurant on the planet. “You must be a damn cheap date,” Dean said, without realizing he’d said it aloud.

“Is this a date?” Cas asked, confused head tilt and all.

Shit. “No, it’s just, umm…” Dean stumbled over his words even worse than he’d stumbled over his own feet just a few minutes ago. “It’s, uh.. It’s not a…” His blush was now back, and it had brought friends, judging by how hot his face felt.

“Oh, right. Because you’re not ‘into guys’.” Cas was using the air quotes again, and on any other person it would’ve looked stupid, but in that traitorous part of Dean’s brain (which was slowly becoming the entire brain), he couldn’t help but notice how cute it looked.

“Uh, I…” Maybe just being honest would be less painful at this point? It sure as hell couldn’t be more. “At this point I don’t even know.” Dean pushed past Cas to get through the doorway, and tried his hardest to ignore the almost hurt looking confusion that painted his friend’s face.

“Dean?” Cas asked, as he scrambled after his friend. Dean flopped down in the first empty booth he could find, and couldn’t bring himself to look up from the table top when Cas sat down across from him. “Is something wrong?” The concern in Cas’ voice hit Dean right in the gut.

“I…” Dean started, before they were interrupted by the waitress. Cas ordered a bacon cheeseburger, fries, and a chocolate shake, and Dean just nodded his head and said “Same.”

When she finally left, Cas reached his hand across the table and grabbed Dean’s. “I’m still not completely used to humans, Dean, but it’s obvious something’s wrong. Please tell me? I don’t like seeing you suffer like this.”

“I think I was wrong,” Dean managed to push out.

“About what?” Cas asked, confused once again.

“About liking guys,” Dean said so softly it was almost a whisper.

“Is that bad?” Cas asked, and Dean shook his head. Cas pulled back his hand and raised one of his eyebrows questioningly. “I don’t really see a problem, then. Only… you seemed sure about it last night. What changed? Did you meet somebody?” Dean nodded, still unable to speak. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think Cas looked upset after the nod. “Who did you meet, Dean?”

“You…” Dean said, and Cas’ eyes widened. He was about to speak, when the waitress arrived with their food. Worst timing ever, lady. Though at least she was smart enough to know that she was interrupting something this time, and she was gone as quickly as possible. Definitely earned her an awesome tip there. Dean picked up a french fry and chewed on it, though he didn’t really have much of an appetite now.

He looked up at Cas, to see him staring at him intently. Now it was Dean’s turn to be confused. “Are you saying that…” Cas started, then looked like he was trying to figure out the right words. “That you’re into me?” Cas finally managed to finish.

“Yeah, I guess?” Dean said, putting the other half of the french fry back on his plate. “I mean, it doesn’t even make any sense,” he started babbling, having pretty much no control over his mouth at this point. “Yeah, we spent a ton of time together when we were kids and all, but then we didn’t see each other for thirteen years, and for a big chunk of that I thought you didn’t even exist, even if you showed up from time to time in my freaking dreams. I thought I was just remembering my damn imaginary friend or something. And then that stupid dream last night, where we were kissing each other…”

“On the beach, with my tail curled around you legs?” Cas finished, making Dean’s jaw drop.

“Yeah, how’d you…”

“I had the same dream, Dean,” Cas said, eyes wide in disbelief.

“Is that even possible?” Dean asked, food completely forgotten.

“Maybe?” Cas replied, starting to anxiously wring his hands under the table. “When I was little, I would hear of stories like this, of two merfolk who would share dreams and be drawn to each other, complete each other. But soulmates like that are rare, and I’d never once heard of it happening with a human, and…”

Dean cut off Cas’ babbling this time. “Wait, soulmates?”

“Two souls, bound together by fate,” Cas stopped wringing his hands, going almost completely still.

“That stuff only happens in movies, Cas,” Dean said, though not with anywhere near as much conviction as he would’ve hoped for.

“No one could ever figure out why I could suddenly go on land with legs like a human,” Cas said to himself.

“Cas?”

“And when you were leaving, I felt like I needed to kiss you, even though I was so young I barely even understood what it meant,” Cas continued.

“Hey, Cas?”

“I’d never been that close to land before, the day we met, but I felt like I needed to be there…” Cas trailed off.

“Snap out of it, Cas,” Dean admonished him.

“Dean…”

“That stuff’s completely crazy sounding, Cas. It can’t exist, there has to be some other explanation. Stuff like that doesn’t just happen…” Dean was cut off as Cas had suddenly lunged across the table, spilling his milkshake in the process, to grab Dean’s shirt collar and pull him into a kiss.

The world suddenly exploded in light, and Dean was surrounded by an otherworldly sense of Cas. Everything felt right and perfect for those few seconds when their lips were touching, and Dean felt lightheaded when Cas finally pulled away.

“Wow.” The word was out of Dean’s mouth before he could even think straight.

“Like mermaids, Dean? Mermaids that can’t exist?” Cas said, and if Dean didn’t know any better, he’d say Cas sounded smug. Though going off of Cas’ expression, maybe Dean didn’t know any better.

Once again, the waitress was back, trying to help clean up the dripping chocolate milkshake. “Can we… get to-go boxes for this?” Dean asked, waving his hand weakly at the untouched food.

“Of course,” the waitress said and smiled. “I’ll get you a replacement shake, too.” She went off to grab the boxes and to put in the shake order.

Dean reached for his wallet, but Cas stopped him. “I can pay. Bobby gives me money to clean, but I don’t have many uses for it. We can take this to the beach and eat?” The last bit was obviously a question, so Dean answered by nodding.

A few minutes later, Dean was walking behind Cas to a deserted section of the big beach that was only a few blocks from the garage, still in a daze. When Cas sat down in the sand, Dean followed, and he accepted the take out container and to-go cup that held his milkshake.

“This is such an amazing thing, Dean,” Cas said happily, before taking a huge bite of his burger. He chewed and swallowed quickly before starting to speak again, and Dean was dimly aware of thinking at least he had good manners. “Like I said, soulmates are really rare. I’m not sure anybody has met one in a very long time. And to have mine be you.” Cas turned to stare at Dean, with such affection in his gaze that Dean couldn’t breathe for a second. “I couldn’t have possibly asked for anyone better.”

“I’m not that great,” Dean muttered, taking a bite of his own burger, if just to not have to talk for chewing.

“You’re incredible, Dean,” Cas said, placing his hand on Dean’s thigh in what he could only assume Cas thought was a reassuring gesture, but really just made breathing even more impossible for Dean. He choked on his food for a second, before taking a drink of his shake. “Anybody else, they would’ve brought other people to capture me. But you just wanted to be my friend.”

“I was a kid, they wouldn’t do stuff like that,” Dean said, though he didn’t completely believe it. Other kids would’ve wanted to show Cas off, to brag about him by making other people see what they were talking about. Until that last night, he’d never even once thought to question Cas not wanting to be around humans other than him. It was like he knew, instinctively, to protect Cas from a world that wouldn’t understand him.

“Dean,” Cas said, shaking his head. Dean just sighed, and took another bite of burger. At least Cas had been right about them being delicious. “Don’t sell yourself short. You are an amazing person.”

“Trust me, I’m not,” Dean said.

Cas tilted his head in confusion. “Why would you say that?”

Dean sighed again and put down his burger. “What Bobby said? About the socializing? I got in a lot of fights a few years back. I just felt angry all the time, and took it out on everybody around me. I didn’t really have friends throughout high school. I still don’t even know why I was so angry, I just… was.” Dean shrugged. “So, I’m not really that great of a person, Cas. I’m sure you could do way better than me.” The words were barely out of Dean’s mouth before Cas’ arms were around him, hugging him harder than he’d ever been hugged in years.

“Don’t say things like that, Dean,” Cas said into his shoulder. “I don’t want anybody else, I just want you.” Dean awkwardly started hugging him back. “I waited for you, all this time, and tried my hardest to find you.” Cas lifted his head to stare Dean in the eyes. “Do you really think I would’ve done something like that for an awful person?”

“Cas,” Dean breathed out. Cas was staring at him with such devotion, it broke something inside of him. Something that maybe needed to be broken. He slowly, tentatively, reached his hand up to cup Cas’ cheek, questioning every inch with his eyes. When Cas leaned into his hand, Dean finally went for it, and pulled him into a soft kiss. Without the fear, the lights were actually incredibly pleasant. Cas’ lips tasted like bacon cheeseburger and chocolate milkshake, and something deeper, like the ocean itself.

When they pulled apart, the world seemed different. Better, almost. As if that kiss had settled the argument, they both went back to eating, the silence now completely comfortable. They tossed their trash in a garbage can as they left the beach, and as they started back towards the garage, Dean finally asked the question that needed to be asked. “Now what?”

“We go back to work, of course. Our lunch hour is probably already over.” Cas gave him a look that showed how silly he thought that question had been.

“No, I mean about us?” Dean asked. “Where do we go from here? Because I’m pretty sure we can’t go off and get married and have a bunch of kids and live the white picket fence dream. You’re kinda not exactly human, you know. So, what happens next?”

That one actually stopped Cas in his tracks. “I…” He looked at a loss for words. “I hadn’t really thought of that yet. Where do we go?” He rubbed his right flip flop on the ground, his face pointed down and his mood obviously a lot less jubilant than it had been up until now. “Is this… will this even work, Dean?” Cas looked over at Dean then, tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes.

“Oh, shit Cas,” Dean said, before grabbing his friend (his boyfriend? his soulmate?) in a hug. “We’ll… we’ll just have to figure this out as we go, for now. Hell, I’m not even twenty yet. Nobody has this crap figured out at my age, even when their stuff is a billion times easier than this. We can figure it out one day at a time or whatever for now, okay?” He kissed Cas on the cheek, and held his face so they were looking each other in the eyes. He was distracted by the impossible blueness for a few seconds, but he finally managed to continue. “We’ll make it work.”

“Thank you, Dean,” Cas said softly, pulling him back into the hug. When they finally got back on their way to the garage, Cas reached for Dean’s hand, and Dean let him. Walking while holding hands with anybody felt weird, but with Cas it was a good kind of weird. They let go before they actually reached the garage, after Dean told Cas how he wanted to tell Bobby later and not just go in, guns blazing and hands being held. Cas had given him a slightly confused look at the way he’d phrased it, but the meaning was clear so he’d nodded and consented.

The rest of the work day had that same kind of good weird feeling, at least as far as Dean was concerned. Cas smiled at him every time their eyes met, and he even waved a few times, and for some reason that made Dean incredibly happy. Bobby gave Dean a look when he told him it was quitting time, but he slipped him a key to the house he’d had made earlier and accepted Dean’s excuse of “I’ll tell you later” before he left with Cas.

Cas was incredibly excited to ride in Dean’s car, and Dean couldn’t help but laugh at just how adorable it was. It was like he was six all over again, and just accepting everything about Cas as it happened because it was Cas, and there was no other reason necessary. When they pulled up outside of Bobby’s house, Cas followed him inside as Dean went upstairs to change into a pair of swim trunks. They’d decided on the ride over to head out to one of their old deserted coves to go swimming, mostly because Dean really wanted to see Cas’ new tail markings. Apparently when merfolk like him hit puberty, they grew additional fin bits to help them swim better, and they developed markings on their tails to help attract a mate. Cas had actually blushed when explaining the mate part, and Dean had grabbed his hand and held it, making a flirty sounding joke about how he didn’t need to worry about that anymore, which had only caused Cas to blush even harder. Everything was just slipping right back into place, and Dean would probably be feeling scared right now, if it weren’t for how perfect it all felt, how right.

It took a lot longer to reach the cove they had in mind from land as opposed to just swimming there, but Dean was a little bit worried about anybody seeing Cas when he didn’t have legs that needed no explanation, even if it was only an hour or so until the sun would start setting and the beach wasn’t even slightly crowded. When they finally arrived, Cas gave him a proud grin, and started stripping. Dean still turned away, because soulmates or not it still felt embarrassing, and he finally looked up when he heard that distinct splash that could only come from Cas’ tail hitting the water. He stripped his own t-shirt off and waded in to join the happy mermaid… merman… whatever the hell Cas was.

Cas was splashing about, looking probably happier than Dean had ever seen him look. “Swimming with you was probably the thing I missed most, Dean,” he called happily to Dean, who was still making his way over to the deeper parts where Cas was.

When Dean finally reached him, he gave him a quick kiss to the mouth, struggling only slightly to keep afloat while doing so. “I missed it too, Cas, even if you beat me every single time we raced.”

“It wasn’t my fault you were so slow,” Cas teased.

“Yeah, well you cheated by being half fish,” Dean responded, sticking his tongue out at him.

“I’m not half fish,” Cas pouted playfully. “I’m all merfolk.”

“And all mine!” Dean cried, before pouncing on him, as much as a human can pounce while treading water in the ocean. They laughed and wrestled with each other for a few minutes, Cas ever mindful to not do anything that might cause Dean to go under the water without warning. Then Dean tugged at Cas’ arm. “Come back up on shore for a few minutes,” he said as he tried to catch his breath from all the laughter and roughhousing. “I wanna see what your tail looks like before it gets dark.” Cas nodded, and they both headed towards the cove’s beach.

Dean helped Cas drag himself far enough onto the sand that his entire tail was out of the water. He couldn’t help the gasp that escaped from his throat. “It’s… holy shit Cas, it’s beautiful,” Dean said in awe.

“Thanks,” Cas said softly, and Dean could tell he was blushing, but he couldn’t pull his eyes away from the tail. The designs looked like random swirls, and they combined to make the most amazing pattern Dean had ever seen. There were smaller fins on the tail itself, and an amazing fin going up Cas’ back. He reached to touch the back fin, but looked at Cas first as if asking for permission.

Cas nodded, and Dean put his hands on it. He was expecting it to be slimy or something, like the few fish he’d managed to catch over the years when his dad had dragged him and Sammy out somewhere to go fishing and ‘bond’ as men, but it was just smooth. He trailed his hand along Cas’ tail then, and felt more of the same non-slimy smoothness. He heard Cas’ breath catch, and he removed his hand immediately, even going so far as to step back a few steps. “Sorry,” Dean said, worried that maybe he’d hurt Cas somehow.

“It’s okay, Dean,” Cas said, a little breathy. Had he just…Did he...

“We can, uh… go back in the water now, if you want,” Dean said, trying to hide his own sudden blush.

“That’d probably be a good idea,” Cas said softly. Dean helped him drag himself back into deep enough water that he could swim again, and they both swam out to where the had started, Dean treading water again.

“Your tail is really pretty,” Dean said, groaning inwardly at how lame that sounded.

“Thanks,” Cas said, turning his face away from Dean in embarrassment.

“I ended up with a really pretty soulmate, didn’t I?” Dean said, continuing his stupid things said list, and wanted to shove something in his mouth so he couldn’t say anything worse.

“As did I,” Cas responded, still turned away from Dean.

There was awkward silence between them, before Dean finally gave up on trying to salvage the situation. He splashed Cas and then swam off quickly. “Bet you can’t catch me, Cas,” Dean called back behind him, and started swimming as fast as he could when he heard the telltale splash of Cas following behind. He dove under the water, knowing that wouldn’t give him any advantage over Cas, but at least maybe he’d be able to swim a little faster.

Dean hadn’t realized how quickly the shallows dropped off at this cove, since they’d never swam very far out as kids, and as he went deeper still, he started to think maybe he should turn around and head back up. But right when he was about to, Cas barreled into him, startling him and making him gasp in shock. Which is literally the worst thing you can do when you’ve been underwater for almost a minute. Dean started panicking, and it took Cas a few too many seconds to realize what was wrong. Dean’s vision was starting to go a little blurry as he felt Cas grab him by the wrist to pull him up, just like when they’d first met. Only he was way too deep this time.

Shit, he’d only just found Cas again, and now here he was, about to die from drowning. His first deep breath startled him, and he tried to cough, but his mouth was still filled with water. Wait… Dean opened his eyes, and he was still a few feet below the surface. The hell? Cas was staring at him in amazement, and Dean couldn’t figure out how he was managing to breathe. Then he felt movement on the side of his neck, and he put his hand up to feel… gills?

_The fucking hell, Cas?_ He asked, without even knowing how he did it.

_Dean?_ He heard Cas’ voice in his head. _Dean, you have… you were drowning, and gills showed up, and…_

_Kinda like your legs?_ Dean asked, suddenly understanding, at least a tiny bit.

He could tell the moment Cas understood, as well, because his eyes widened in surprise. _Exactly like my legs…_ They weren’t words spoken like normal, but they were still tinged in awe nonetheless.

_More freaky soulmate stuff, Cas?_ Dean asked, marveling just as much at accepting all this stuff so easily as he was at his new gills.

_It would seem_ , Cas replied, as he swam closer.

_Hey, come here for a sec_ , Dean said, hit with an idea he really wanted to try out now, because he could see that Cas had gills in pretty much the same spot. Cas swam close enough that Dean grabbed him and pulled him into a kiss. It felt really weird, weirder than all the rest of the stuff combined, but it was still that good kind of weird that Dean was almost starting to expect, wherever Cas was concerned. _I was right, we don’t hafta come up for air_ , Dean said smugly.

Cas pulled away from the kiss and swatted Dean on the arm. _I’m sure us being able to kiss for longer than on land wasn’t the only reason this happened, Dean._

_Yeah, but it’s definitely the best reason so far_ , Dean said back, teasingly. Cas let out the aquatic equivalent of a huff, but he went right back to kissing Dean. _Best boyfriend ever_ , Dean said, and laughed when Cas playfully swatted him again, though not breaking the kiss this time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally continuing this. So beyond sorry that I took so freaking long. I've legit been hopping back and forth between four or five different fics for the past few weeks, plus whatever ones I've published in that time. Wicked A.D.D. on my muse's part. All her fault. Blame her. (please don't hate me)
> 
> So, hopefully this was at least a little bit worth the wait. *fingers crossed*

“Even without having to keep stopping to breathe, that was pretty exhausting,” Dean said a little while later, sprawled on the beach with Cas curled up next to him.

“It was probably all the swimming,” Cas murmured into the side of his neck, tickling Dean very slightly with his warm breath. “You’re probably not used to it.” He shifted his tail to wrap it a little tighter around Dean’s legs.

Dean didn’t bother trying to stop the contented sigh that came when Cas cuddled in closer. He absentmindedly started to run his fingers through Cas’ hair, and let out a small chuckle when Cas unintentionally ended up mimicking his own earlier contented sigh. “Guess I’ll just have to get used to it, then? What with my aquatic boyfriend and all.”

“You don’t have to suffer on my account,” Cas teased.

“Mmm, gotta love that sarcasm, Cas,” Dean teased right back. “On you it’s kinda hot…” Dean paused for a moment, feeling awkward suddenly. He quickly redirected. “But yeah, definitely had fun, what with the swimming, and the splashing, and the…”

“Kissing?” Cas finished, sounding hopeful. “Because I really enjoyed that part, too.”

“I’ve created a monster,” Dean mumbled, though he definitely wasn’t complaining. As inexperienced as Cas had to be, he was a damn quick learner. Dean leaned in, grabbing Cas’ face gently, and kissed him again. He was kind of reminded of his dream, their dream, from last night, but he couldn’t focus on that thought because all his attention was on Cas’ mouth, and his lips, and his tongue, and his teeth, and now there was hands, and holy crap yes.

Dean found himself on top of Cas, and he couldn’t care less how he’d ended up there. His hand slid down Cas’ thigh, feeling those smooth scales of his tail again. Cas’ breath hitched for a second, then he pulled Dean even deeper into the kiss, far more frantic than before. “Feels good,” he breathed into Dean’s mouth.

“Cas,” Dean moaned softly, already starting to rut, unable to help himself. The thinness of his swim trucks didn’t exactly help matters any. When Cas started to return the movements, Dean moaned even louder. “Fuck… feels so good…” His hands were back in Cas’ hair, and judging by the noises, Cas was glad they were.

Dean could feel Cas getting hard beneath him, and that only managed to turn him on more. The rutting became full on humping, to an embarrassing degree, but he could worry about that later. Felt too good now. “God, Cas,” Dean moaned, and then he felt Cas’ legs wind around his waist, meeting at his back, and…

“Cas?” The boy underneath him whimpered as Dean stopped. “You, uhh… you have your legs back now, and, uhh…” He didn’t know where to go next with what he needed to say.

“Yes, and?” Cas asked, trying in vain to get Dean back into it.

“It feels kinda weird?” Dean said, sounding unsure of himself, not completely understanding why it did, but it did and it was enough to freak him out a little.

That was apparently enough to stop Cas entirely. “Dean?” he asked as he cupped Dean’s already blushing face. “I’m sorry.” He brushed his thumb along Dean’s cheekbone and smiled.

“No, no, it’s not your fault, Cas. Just… it’s kinda… new territory and all,” Dean said softly, already worried that he’d hurt Cas’ feelings.

“Because you were never into guys?” Cas asked.

“Yeah,” Dean said as he carefully climbed off of his now fully human shaped boyfriend. He avoided looking anywhere other than Cas’ face, knowing full well the guy was lying there naked now. And with that thought, his blush deepened. “I mean, I still want this, and you, but… it’s gonna take some time for me to get used to all this, you know?” He sat up and scratched at the back of his neck, still avoiding looking much of anywhere.

“The kisses are okay, hell, better than okay,” he continued as he tried to reassure Cas. He turned to face the other direction so that Cas could get dressed again. He could hear the other boy get up and start moving around, so he went back to talking. “The hand holding and stuff was cool, too. A bit more cutesy than I’m used to, but it did feel pretty nice. But the, uhh… the… naked time was a bit much. For now, at least.”

Cas draped his arms over Dean’s shoulders, his t-shirt pressed against Dean’s bare back, and kissed Dean on the cheek. “Take all the time you need, Dean. I’m fine with just kisses for now. I want everything you’re willing to give me, but only when you’re willing.”

“I really did luck out with you, didn’t I?” Dean turned his head enough to give Cas a quick kiss on the lips.

“It would seem we were both pretty lucky, Dean,” Cas said, hugging him tightly.

Dean untangled himself from Cas and stood up, brushing as much sand from his dried swim trunks as he could manage. He pulled on his shirt and slipped into his jeans, automatically pulling his cell phone from his pocket out of habit. He saw the time and gasped. “Shit, it's later than I thought, I need to head back.”

“Oh,” Cas somehow managed to put more disappointment into that one syllable than Dean ever thought possible. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?” The crushed look on the poor guy's face broken Dean’s heart. Until he had an idea.

“Hey, you said Bobby thinks you’re homeless, right?” Cas nodded. “Maybe he’d be okay if you stayed the night from time to time?” Dean mentally crossed his fingers, praying to any god that was listening that he was right.

Cas perked up immediately. “That’d be wonderful, Dean.” That beautiful smile that lit up his face made the awkward phone call Dean was about to make completely worth it.

It took a few rings for Bobby to answer, and he was gruff sounding when he said “Yeah?”

“Hey, uh, Bobby, sorry for staying out so late, lost track of time and all,” Dean said nervously.

“You’re an adult, I’m not about to give you a bedtime,” Bobby responded. Were it anybody else, the tone he was using would indicate he was angry, but Dean knew him well enough to know that he was just showing he cared. Grumpiness was just his way of being fatherly.

Dean laughed nervously. Here goes nothing. “Well, I was hanging out with Cas, and I was wondering…” He paused, trying to build courage. “He, uhh… he doesn't really have a place to stay and all, and I thought that maybe he could, like, stay the night or something?” He rushed that last bit out, and hoped like hell it hadn’t sounded as garbled as he’d thought it had.

“Sure,” Bobby said, and Dean let out the breath he didn’t realize he was holding. “I can dig out a sleeping bag from the attic for him. This mean you’re gonna be back soon?”

“Yeah, we’re about to head out now. Thanks,” Dean said, smiling. They said their goodbyes, and Dean hung up. He motioned to Cas to follow him, and they both made their way back to the car.

On the drive back, Dean realized something he probably should’ve asked before calling Bobby. “You gonna be okay Cas, being out of the water for so long and all?”

“I’ve never noticed any problems before. In the beginning I spent a night here or there outside of the water, because I was worried that if I went back into the water that something might’ve messed up, that either my tail wouldn’t come back, or my legs wouldn’t,” Cas answered, making Dean’s heart thump painfully.

Just imagining a younger Cas, scared to death about what was happening to him, was enough to make Dean grab for his boyfriend’s hand. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help you, Cas,” he said softly.

“It’s okay Dean. It all worked out in the end.” Cas smiled, and Dean had to force himself to look back to the road. “I got to keep both, and now you’re back. That’s pretty much all I want.”

“That, and bacon cheeseburgers?” Dean teased.

“Oh yes, and bacon cheeseburgers. And gummy bears, too,” Cas said back happily.

“You and gummy bears,” Dean muttered.

“They’re delicious,” Cas countered.

“But there are so many better foods out there, Cas, to obsess over something as boring as gummy bears,” Dean explained, pulling into the driveway next to Bobby’s truck.

“And I’ve not had very many of them,” Cas responded.

“Shit…” Dean said. “I didn’t even think about that. I’m sorry. I keep saying stupid shit, don’t I?” Dean gave Cas as apologetic of a look as he could manage.

Cas just laughed and gave Dean a quick kiss. “It’s okay Dean. I forgive you.”

“I’ll fix that bit at least,” he promised, all the different foods he wanted to have Cas try rushing through Dean’s head all at once. “The food thing, I mean. I’m decent in a kitchen, and maybe we can go to restaurants for stuff I don’t know how to cook.”

“I’d like that,” Cas said, smiling really big. “Maybe they could be dates?”

“I’d like that,” Dean said. Cas stuck his tongue out at him, and Dean returned the gesture. They were both giggling as they entered the house.

Cas waved at Bobby as they entered. “Thank you for letting me stay,” he said politely. Dean slightly worried that maybe his manners weren’t as good as Cas’, and made a mental note to start working on them.

“No problem, kid. When I told you last year that if you ever needed a place to stay, I had one, I meant it,” Bobby said from his chair in the living room. “Stay whenever you need to,” he continued. “I can always give you that one’s room, make him sleep on the couch.” He pointed at Dean as he said it, and Dean couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

But Cas didn’t realize Bobby was joking, because his eyes went wide and he gasped. “No, I’d never dream of making Dean suffer just so I could have a room. I’m okay with where I usually sleep,” he said quickly.

Bobby let out a soft laugh. “Was only teasing you, kid. I like my couch too much to give it up.” Dean stuck his tongue out at him, glad to be back and teasing his not-exactly-uncle again. He’d missed Bobby almost as much as he’d missed the ocean. And Cas. “The sleeping bag’s on Dean’s bed, and I scrounged up an extra pillow. And remember, you’re welcome here any time, Cas.”

“Thank you,” Cas said again.

“We didn’t get anything while we were out, so I’m gonna make us something quick before bed, Bobby,” Dean said, heading towards the kitchen.

“Clean up whatever mess you make, don’t make me hafta call an ambulance, but otherwise make whatever you want,” Bobby called out.

Cas peered over Dean’s shoulder as he dug through the fridge. Nothing sounded good til he got to the freezer and found a frozen pizza. “Ever had one of these yet?” He asked Cas. At the mer-person’s head shake, Dean opened the box, reading the directions on the back as he grabbed a pizza pan. “I’ll hafta get you good pizza soon, but this’ll work for now,” he said as he preheated the oven.

Dean explained all the different kinds of foods he wanted Cas to try as they waited for the pizza to finish baking. Other than pizza, he seemed most excited about tacos and pie, though the pie may have been Dean’s fault since he probably spent at least two minutes just talking about how amazing it was.

The timer dinged, and Dean pulled the oven door to see that it was actually done, and smiled when he heard Cas sigh happily behind him. “That smells incredible,” Cas said, sighing again.

“Just wait til you try it.” Dean grabbed the pizza cutter, and dished up four slices for each of them, then sat down at the small kitchen table. Cas joined him, and took his first bite before Dean had the chance to warn him to let it cool off first.

“Oww!” Cas yelped, pulling the slice away immediately.

“It’s hot,” Dean warned. When Cas gave him a bitch face worthy of Sammy, he couldn’t help but laugh. At fifteen, Sam Winchester was definitely the world champion of bitch face-ing, but he may have found a worthy opponent in Cas. Dean was nice enough to grab a cold glass of water for Cas to help him soothe his burnt tongue, though. He wasn’t completely heartless.

When the food was finally cool enough to eat safely (which Dean had to tell Cas, and even take a bite of his own to prove, before he was willing to try again), the plate in front of Cas was empty in minutes, even though it had been one of the extra-large sized frozen pizzas. “That was so amazing,” he gushed. He eyed the remaining piece sitting on Dean’s plate as he was eating the last bit of his third slice, so of course Dean pushed his plate towards Cas. The fifth piece was gobbled up just as quickly as the first four. “It’s almost as good as the bacon cheeseburgers earlier.” He smiled, not even noticing the specks of sauce on his chin and even one on his nose.

“C’mere, you got something on your face,” Dean said, and grabbed a napkin. Cas leaned forward, and Dean wiped up all the sauce.

“You missed a spot,” Cas said softly.

Dean looked all over his boyfriend’s face, still getting used to the “b” word (but at least it wasn’t as scary as the “s” word, so he figured he’d just get used to the less cosmic-destiny one first), and couldn’t find any more spots. “Where?”

“Here,” Cas said, darting his head forward and kissing Dean on the lips.

“That was low, Cas,” Dean teased when they broke apart.

“You liked it,” Cas teased back. Was Dean becoming a bad influence on him already?

“True, but it was still low,” Dean pouted, which only caused Cas to laugh. He did it with his whole being, and Dean wanted to tell him every lame joke he could think of, just to get a few more of those out of him. He might very well have, if he hadn’t yawned right then.

“We should head to your room,” Cas suggested.

“Yeah,” Dean agreed, and gathered their plates. He rinsed them off and put them in the dishwasher, then followed Cas upstairs. “This one,” Dean pointed out the door that was for his room. Cas went in, and Dean started feeling nervous. He knew nothing was going to happen, because Cas would never push him, but still. His boyfriend was going to be sleeping in his room. That was a big step, right? The few girls he’d hooked up with during his short college career had never asked him to stay over afterwards, so this was kind of a first, even if Cas was going to be sleeping on the floor.

“Dean?” Cas sounded concerned.

“Yeah, coming,” Dead replied, wincing when he realized what he’d just said. He really hoped that Cas was still innocent in the ways of… the bedroom. At least language-wise.

Cas was looking perplexed by the rolled up sleeping bag, so Dean set it up on the floor, and showed Cas how to crawl into it and zip it up. He dug two pairs of pajama bottoms from his still-unpacked bags, and handed one to Cas, heading to the bathroom to change into his own. It took every ounce of willpower he had to not squeak when he came back to his room to see Cas sitting on his bed wearing the pants and nothing else. He’d been in rowdy locker rooms, guys not caring that they were completely naked and uncovered, and he’d never felt anything like this. It was only Cas.

“So, uh… bedtime, I guess,” Dean stuttered out. Seriously, Cas’ chest. Holy shit…

“Okay,” Cas said, awkwardly making his way into the sleeping bag. Dean turned off the light and got into his bed.

“Night, Cas,” he said as he leaned over the edge.

“Night, Dean,” Cas said back. In the minimal light, Dean could see the smile on Cas’ face.

Dean leaned back, and tried to get comfortable. The bed had been just fine last night, but for some reason tonight he just could not find a comfortable position. It felt almost like something was missing.

“Dean?” Came a whisper from the floor.

“Yeah Cas?” Dean answered.

“Something about this sleeping bag doesn’t feel right,” Cas complained, no longer whispering.

Dean looked over the edge. It didn’t look like Cas had messed anything up, so he was at least using the thing right. “Is the floor too hard?”

“I’ve slept on the ground before, and it’s never bothered me,” Cas replied, visibly shifting inside the bag. “That’s not it. It just feels… off.”

Kind of like what Dean had just been thinking. “Well, maybe you could…” Was he really about to suggest this? “You can always come up here with me?” Yes, yes he was.

“That sounds better,” Cas said, followed immediately by the sound of a zipper. A few seconds after the zipper noise stopped, Cas was crawling into bed next to Dean. He wrapped his arms around Cas, pulling him to his chest. Cas snuggled in closer, just like Dean had been hoping he would. And now the bed felt right again.

“Okay,” Dean couldn’t help but ask, “how bad is it that neither of us felt comfortable til we were in bed together?”

“Soulmates usually feel better when they’re close,” Cas mumbled into Dean’s chest.

“So this is kinda normal then?” He felt Cas nodding. Dean snuggled in closer, deciding he’d do the rest of his thinking tomorrow. His brain was already starting to get fuzzy around the edges. He lazily kissed the top of Cas’ head, and fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sooooooooooooooooooooo sorry for never updating this. Most of this chapter was done already, for the past few months, but a friend read over it and thought one of the parts was weird and that unintentionally caused me to not wanna touch it for a long time. I unfortunately still have no idea where I'm going with this, though, so bear with me. Again, I am so freaking sorry you guys. :(
> 
> This is why I avoid publishing unfinished stuff any more...

Dean was having the most amazing dream ever. He was back under water with Cas, and they were swimming really deep this time. The only thing that was different was that Dean had a tail. It was just like Cas’, only it was more green than blue. The little swirls and patterns were the exact same, though. The aware part of his brain was marveling at the experience, but dream him was swimming with ease like this was nothing new. He wondered if this was how Cas felt in the water, going so fast yet still being so agile.

Cas tapped him on the shoulder, indicating with his head to follow, and Dean did, thrilling at the feel of chasing after him. No wonder Cas’ favorite thing had always been swimming with him, because this was freaking awesome! How was dream him not more excited? He should totally be way more excited.

Dean didn’t know much about oceans, but from the kinds of things they were passing he was pretty sure they were really far out, like miles far. There was lots of movement off in the distance suddenly, and Dean finally realized where he was. Cas was taking him to see his home. Just as they were starting to get closer, and Dean could barely make out other merfolk moving around, going about their daily lives…

That was when Dean woke up.

He let out a groan, annoyed that he woke up before the best part. Though now that he had those occasional gills, maybe he could actually go see where Cas lived one of these days.

He glanced at the alarm clock and saw that he still had almost an hour before they needed to get up and start getting ready for work. Dean smiled and snuggled in closer to Cas. This whole soulmate thing was weird, with the never ending plot twists and the impossible basically happening every five minutes, but it definitely had a lot of good parts too. Like cuddling in bed. That was probably one of Dean’s favorite parts so far.

Cas let out a soft but unidentifiable noise in his sleep, and pushed himself even closer to Dean. And that was when Dean blushed, because apparently at least part of Cas was awake and ready to go. He froze, not sure what to do. Technically, they’d really only been dating for less than a day. If this was considered dating. Cas was his boyfriend now, kind of, so that counted as dating, sort of. Right? But that was definitely morning wood nudging at Dean’s thigh, and as weird as it was, his own dick was enjoying the show and wanted to play too.

When Cas started to move, that was when Dean’s brain completely short circuited. He managed to turn his head into the pillow in time to muffle the moan that escaped from his mouth, because he really did not want Bobby to be hearing pretty much any of this. There was just something about Cas that made Dean want things that he’d never even thought of before. Like this. He let out another moan into the pillow at how damn incredible Cas felt, rubbing up against him.

Without thinking, Dean turned his hips just right, and that first brush of junk on junk had him biting the pillow for all he was worth. Unfortunately, Cas was still out of it and didn’t have a pillow to muffle his own noises. Shit. Dean released the pillow and pushed his mouth onto Cas’, which was apparently a really good way to wake the guy up immediately. His eyes snapped open, and he stared at Dean in shock and a tiny bit of horror.

Still going purely on instinct (which was probably being driven by his libido right now), Dean licked at Cas’ lips, showing him this was okay while also trying to get him to deepen the kiss. It took a few seconds, but then Cas was kissing him back, almost desperately. Dean started running his fingers through Cas’ hair, knowing how much he liked the feel of it, and started moving again. For something he’d never even thought about doing a few days ago, the disappointment of no longer having Cas grinding up against him was so much it surprised Dean. Maybe this part of the relationship would actually work, and eventually they could…

Thinking went away when Cas sped up. Dean ran one hand up and down Cas’ muscled back while the other stayed tangled in his hair. He was definitely glad that Cas hadn’t bothered to put on a shirt before going to bed, and he was now wishing he’d done the same. Any other time, Dean would feel embarrassed for dry humping like an inexperienced virgin, but god it just felt so good, and Cas was so just so solid against him. He knew then, in what little part of his brain that was still functioning, that no one else would ever feel this good, this right. He could sense those tingling lights at the corner of his mind, but they only made it better. Perfect.

“Dean,” Cas pulled away and gasped. “I feel… it feels…”

“I know, I’m close too,” Dean muttered as he started sucking on Cas’ shoulder blade. The guy tasted like the ocean, and if Dean wasn’t careful he’d start getting turned on whenever he saw salt water.

“Close.. to what?” Cas panted, his thrusts starting to grow erratic, which only turned Dean on more. So close, so close…

“Dean…” Cas moaned, and Dean smashed their mouths together, afraid Cas might be a screamer. He felt Cas tense beneath him, and felt the warm wetness through the two thin pairs of pajama pants, and that was enough for him because he followed only a few seconds later. He’d seriously just came in his damn pants. The things Cas did to him, sheesh.

Dean smoothed back Cas’ hair and kissed him on the forehead. “I think I’m starting to get used to this stuff,” he said softly, flying high from such an amazing orgasm.

“What was that?” Cas asked, looking like he’d discovered something incredible, which made Dean blush a little. Yeah, it had felt amazing, but it was only dry humping. He was sure proper sex would feel way better. And the fact that he could even think that without feeling weirded out amazed Dean. Everything was going so fast, but it never once felt wrong.

“What was what?” Dean asked, realizing he’d spaced out there for a minute.

“That… that feeling. It was like I exploded, but not literally. It was amazing, Dean. I’ve never felt anything like it before. Can we do it again?” Cas looked at him, eyes shining in excitement. Dean’s dick twitched slightly, but there’d have to be at least a few more minutes in between, and… wait, had he…

“You’ve never had that happen before?” Dean asked, and Cas shook his head. “Nothing even kinda like it?” Cas shook his head again. “You’ve seriously, never even once, had an orgasm?” Cas shook his head once again. How was that possible?

“Is that what that was called?” Cas asked innocently. “I really liked it.”

“You never, like, did that yourself?” Dean was getting seriously embarrassed. Giving the sex talk, to his boyfriend, who’d never heard of sex in the first place, was not how he expected to be spending his time.

“Of course not,” Cas replied. “Before last night, I thought its only purpose was urination. If I’d known how good it felt, I might have tried something like it sooner, but I’m glad I found out about it with you,” he finished with a sigh, and snuggled into Dean, the wet spots starting to cool off and feel uncomfortable.

“Hey Cas,” Dean said as he nudged his sexually sated for literally the first time boyfriend away from him. “We gotta get cleaned up now.”

“Don’t wanna move,” Cas said, and buried his head in Dean’s chest.

“It’s gonna get dry, and make our pants stick in really painful ways,” Dean warned.

“Still don’t wanna,” Cas said, trying to bury himself further.

Dean hated to be so manipulative, but it was for their own good. “It’ll hurt me, too.” It was the truth, but he still hated using it.

Cas sighed. “Fine,” he said as he sat up. He winced slightly as he got off the bed, and Dean nodded.

“See? I told you,” he said, as nicely as he could.

“I guess you would know better,” Cas finally admitted, “having had one of these your entire life and all.”

“Merfolk don't have penises?” Dean asked, stunned.

“It’s different, sort of, and only comes out when you’re trying to mate,” Cas explained as Dean started gathering enough stuff for them both to take a shower. Thankfully, the downstairs had its own full bathroom, so Bobby wouldn’t have any reason to come upstairs, unless it was to tell them something.

“That’s weird,” Dean said offhandedly.

“And since I’ve never mated, I’ve never really…” Cas trailed off, which definitely caught Dean’s attention.

“You’ve never seen your…” Cas shook his head. “Wow…” Somehow, in less than an hour, this had already managed to win for Dean’s weirdest day ever, topping both yesterday and finding out Cas was his soulmate, and the day before with finding out mermaids existed and Cas wasn’t some childhood fantasy. Bravo, biology, well played.

The next bizarro teaching moment was kind enough to wait until they got to the bathroom. When Dean showed Cas the shower, he just stared at it in confusion. “Lemme guess, you’ve never had a shower before?” Dean sighed.

“No, not really. This is the first time I’ve slept in a house, as well,” Cas reminded him.

“You, uhh… get under the water and wash,” Dean tried to explain. “With soap and shampoo and stuff.”

“Like how you wash when you clean your hands at the sink?” Cas asked as he poked his head in to look around.

“Yeah, like that, except you get your whole body, not just your hands. And you clean your hair with the shampoo,” Dean pointed to the different bottles as he talked, so Cas knew which ones to use.

“Seems much easier to just swim in the ocean for a while,” Cas complained.

“But this gets you a lot cleaner,” Dean replied. “Plus, no salt residue.” Then a thought occurred to him, right out of that old Tom Hanks movie. “You’re not gonna go full mermaid again when you get under the water, right?”

“I shouldn’t,” Cas said, looking like he was thinking really hard. “If it’s anything like rain, I won’t change back. I think it’s only when I’m home in the ocean.”

“That’s just weird,” Dean said, shaking his head.

Cas tilted his own head in contemplation. “Do you grow gills anywhere other than the ocean?”

“You have a point there,” Dean conceded as he handed Cas a towel. “Use this to dry off, and try not to take too long, so I can get mine next.”

“We could shower together?” Cas suggested, without even realizing the kind of thing he was suggesting.

Dean swallowed, hard. “As tempting as that is, I think I still need to build up a bit more to that.”

“Build up? It’s just a shower, Dean,” Cas responded, looking confused.

“When people shower together, they usually do stuff like what we did in the bed,” Dean explained, blushing.

“Oh,” Cas said. “I understand now. I would like to try that someday now, though.” Yep, Dean had created a monster.

“Just take your shower,” Dean said playfully, shoving his boyfriend towards the stall.

Dean busied himself in the bedroom by picking out clothing for the both of them while he waited for the shower to be free. He could have just went downstairs and used Bobby’s, but he really did not want to risk being caught with his pajamas stuck to his crotch and a very obvious wet spot on the front.

“That felt really weird, but I think I liked it,” Cas said from behind him a few minutes later. “I especially liked that the soaps smelled like you.”

“You can wear my clothes today. Pile with the green shirt’s for you,” Dean said, pointing to the shirt, boxers, and jeans he had hoped would fit. Then he turned around to see Cas toweling his hair dry, and wearing nothing but a smile. Dean yelped and turned back around again. “You gotta cover up when you’re naked,” he reprimanded the mermaid.

“Oh, I’m sorry Dean,” Cas said, and Dean could hear the towel moving. “I’m covered up now,” Cas announced. Dean hesitantly turned around, and was thankful that Cas had been telling the truth.

“I’ll, uhh… go get my shower now,” Dean mumbled as he grabbed his own pile of clothing and rushed out of the room. Dozens of naked guys, yet Cas did something completely different to him. The cold water in the shower helped him not think about Cas’ naked body, but only barely.

Seeing Cas wearing his clothes, though, made the cold shower almost pointless. “Does this look okay, Dean?” Cas asked, pointing down at the old green t-shirt and baggy jeans he now had on. “I usually only wear shorts.”

“You look great,” Dean said, trying not to drool. Today was going to be a very long day, filled with a lot of questions Dean needed to ask himself and things he needed to figure out. But first, breakfast. “You ever had cereal yet, Cas?” He asked.

“No, but I’m definitely willing to try it,” Cas said excitedly as he grabbed Dean’s hand. “Let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The part she had thought was weird was the bit about Cas never having seen his penis is mer-form, just in case anybody was curious. And yeah, I admit, it is a bit weird, but that's what the story told me to write, so... *shrugs*

**Author's Note:**

> So, I'm continuing this. Literally no clue where I'm going with it, so I guess I'll just add to it whenever I can. Sorry I fail at updating on a regular basis. :(


End file.
